FANTASTIC FOURTH FOR RINS IN MAD MUGELLO GRAND PRIX

2019-06-02 17:19
Alex Rins: 4th (+ 0.535)
Joan Mir: 12th (+ 20.544)

• Alex Rins fights back at the front for 4th.
• Joan Mir overcomes setback for great 12th.
• Team SUZUKI ECSTAR acknowledge achievements after hard work.

The usual electric atmosphere filled the hills around Mugello Circuit for the 6th round of the 2019 MotoGP Championship, and a thrilling race was witnessed by 84,000 excited fans.

In the morning warm-up session both Joan Mir and Alex Rins found useful improvements and placed themselves 2nd and 4th respectively, providing an extra confidence boost for the pair ahead of the race.

The sizzling circuit saw Alex and Joan start on the hard-medium combination for the 23-lap battle. The Spanish duo both made impressive starts from their tricky grid positions; Rins quickly slotted into 7th, while Mir was 13th.

Class rookie Mir was looking confident and keen to progress but just a few laps into the race he was hit from behind and taken into the gravel trap. After rejoining the track, the youngster was determined to prove his pace once again, he kept his head down and managed a great 12th place at the finish line.

Just one lap into the race, Rins was already up with the top group and ready to do battle. With 14 laps to go he had impressively taken the lead, and it became clear that he was ready for another strong result. An intense fight among the top four saw Alex stay close to the victory, and the title hopeful crossed the line in a very useful 4th place - holding onto 3rd in the championship standings.

Ken Kawauchi - Technical Manager
“Alex did an excellent job considering the grid position yesterday, he put together a great race. I want to apologise to him because it was hard to keep up with the others on the long straight, we have improved the bike and we will continue to work hard for this. Joan picked up some points today and he did a very good race, without the runoff it could have been even better, so we’re happy with the work he did today.”

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
“Alex did a really great race, recovering so well from 13th position on the grid. We’re slightly disappointed for him, because he did everything he could, and it was not enough to stay right with the others. But we know how competitive we are, and there are some other circuits which will suit us better. Anyway, we’re really pleased with this 4th place. Joan started from 20th and he did a great job, getting into points scoring positions, until he had the coming together with Valentino which cost him a lot. But he did so well to recover 12th place. It’s been positive for both riders today.”

Alex Rins
“I don’t think I could have had a better result with a better grid position, I recovered a lot of places on the first lap, but I was losing a lot of time on the straight. We knew it would be a tricky part of the track for us, and it’s a bit of a pity. But I gave 100% and pushed really hard, I tried to pass Dovizioso on the last corner, but he had a bit more traction than me. Anyway, I’m happy with this 4th and it all helps with the championship!”

Joan Mir
“I’m glad to pick up some points today, even if it wasn’t in the position that I wanted or that I felt I could achieve with my potential this weekend. The touch between Valentino and I cost me around seven seconds, and that’s what prevented me from getting a Top 10 finish. Anyway, I want to thank the team for all the great work done this weekend, I feel good and I know the results will come.”

GP of Italy - Race Classification:

1. Danilo PETRUCCI Mission Winnow Ducati 41'33.794
2. Marc MARQUEZ Repsol Honda Team +0.043
3. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Mission Winnow Ducati +0.338
4. Alex RINS Team SUZUKI ECSTAR +0.535
5. Takaaki NAKAGAMI LCR Honda IDEMITSU +6.535
6. Maverick VIÑALES Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP +7.481
7. Michele PIRRO Mission Winnow Ducati +13.288
8. Cal CRUTCHLOW LCR Honda CASTROL +13.937
9. Pol ESPARGARO Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +16.533
10. Fabio QUARTARARO Petronas Yamaha SRT +17.994
11. Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia Racing Team Gresini +20.523
12. Joan MIR Team SUZUKI ECSTAR +20.544
13. Jorge LORENZO Repsol Honda Team +20.813
14. Karel ABRAHAM Reale Avintia Racing +27.298
15. Andrea IANNONE Aprilia Racing Team Gresini +28.051
16. Miguel OLIVEIRA Red Bull KTM Tech 3 +30.101
17. Johann ZARCO Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +41.857
Not Classified
43 Jack MILLER Pramac Racing
63 Francesco BAGNAIA Pramac Racing
55 Hafizh SYAHRIN Red Bull KTM Tech 3
46 Valentino ROSSI Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP
21 Franco MORBIDELLI Petronas Yamaha SRT
Not Finished 1st Lap
53 Tito RABAT Reale Avintia Racing Ducati

MotoGP Championship Standings:

1. Marc MARQUEZ Honda 115
2. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati 103
3. Alex RINS Suzuki 88
4. Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati 82
5. Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 72
6. Jack MILLER Ducati 42
7. Cal CRUTCHLOW Honda 42
8. Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 40
9. Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda 40
10. Pol ESPARGARO KTM 38
11. Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha 34
12. Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha 31
13. Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 27
14. Jorge LORENZO Honda 19
15. Joan MIR Suzuki 12
16. Johann ZARCO KTM 10
17. Michele PIRRO Ducati 9
18. Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 9
19. Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 8
20. Andrea IANNONE Aprilia 7
21. Stefan BRADL Honda 6
22. Karel ABRAHAM Ducati 2
23. Hafizh SYAHRIN KTM 2
24. Tito RABAT Ducati 2
25. Bradley SMITH Aprilia

Source: Team Suzuki Press Office

Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story